SU COMMUNITY: WE PASSED THE RECYCLING TEST!
Let's keep up our efforts to ensure that our recycling won't return to the landfill in the future!
Winter Quarter 2020 update: Seattle University has not failed a contamination audit since March 2019 thanks to the conscious efforts of our community to clean up our recycling. We have put in place numerous process improvements, outreach efforts, and education initiatives to reach this goal, and look forward to working with you all to make sure our recycling stays clean and goes to good use. In the coming year, we will continue to roll out new efforts and support existing ones, while staying cognizant of the university’s goals of reducing our waste output and reaching zero waste status by 2025.
What is recycling contamination?
- Following China's tightening of recycling requirements, waste haulers across the country have become more strict about what can go in the recycling bin. Read more about recycling contamination in Seattle by clicking here.
- How does the state of recycling in Seattle affect Seattle University?
- SU's recycling waste regularly contains contamination. The 6 main spoilers contaminating SU's recycling are styrofoam, plastic film/bags, food waste, liquids, textiles and e-waste.
- Recycling is $70/ton while trash is $190/ton, that is close to 3x more expensive than recycling.
- In 2018 SU sent 554 tons of trash to the landfill and 376 tons of recycling to recycling plants. If recycling is sent to landfill SU will see a $45,120 increase in waste costs.
- Check out The Spectator's February 2019 article and The Spectator's March 2019 article about the recycling contamination problem, and what is SU doing about it.
- Since March 2019, the university has not failed a contamination audit, but work remains to educate our SU community on proper waste disposal in the hopes of further reducing contamination and meeting our waste-zero goals.
Current State of SU's Recycling
- Since March 2019, the university has not failed a contamination audit, but work remains to educate our SU community on proper waste disposal in the hopes of further reducing contamination and meeting our waste-zero goals.
- Early February 2019, SU reached out to all campus members with a call to help reduce our recycling contamination.
- On February 22nd, SU passed the major audit for the campus’ recycling, but the Student Center’s recycling failed another audit soon after. The Student Center recycling compactor (which collects recycling from the kitchens and dining areas) indicated a contamination rate of over 10%. Click here to view the campus audit and Click here to view the Student Center audit.
- On April 12, another audit was performed by our recycling waste vendor Recology Cleanscapes. This time, the recycling compactor for the Student Center passed the test: SU's recycling contamination rate was below 10%. This means that 100% of the recycling generated on campus will now be spared from the landfill and be repurposed into new products.
- What will happen next? Recology Cleanscapes will continue to audit each recyling load we send them and look out for contamination. To ensure we meet their standards, we must continue to think before we throw and educate those around us to keep our recycling clean.
